My Journey through Perthes Disease

So, the last 10 days we have felt a tsunami of emotions as we faced another hurdle with Elijah’s battle against Perthes. A week ago our specialist told us we needed to get Elijah to Baltimore, so that he could attempt to discover and make sense of an unfavorable x-ray, but really stellar range of motion. Our hearts began to throb again as we wrestled with discouragement and more unanswered questions. We were definitely not sure what we were going to hear once we arrived in Baltimore. With the love and support of our church, friends, family, and the sixth grade Loveland Tigers we ventured off in search of more concrete answers in Baltimore. We tried to remain upbeat and positive for Elijah, but I gotta tell you we were struggling internally plagued with all the….WHAT IFS?

After 4 hours at the hospital this is what our surgeon shared with us: Elijah’s bone has healed…meaning the small part that is still there is strong. The decrease/flattening the x-ray was showing was because it had “settled” so to speak from the last surgery. Elijah’s hip is fluid and there is no impingement at this time. Doc said these are the 2 most important factors regardless of the x-ray. He put Elijah through a series of tests and stretches. After an extremely thorough evaluation he said he wants Elijah to begin to work back into running, jumping, playing. He said it’s time to put the bone to work to see what it does and as the bone grows allow Elijah to mold it with motion, stretching, agility, and PT. As he was speaking my mind was racing and my heart was overwhelmed with thanksgiving, disbelief, and hope. Our eyes swelled with tears as we watched Elijah take in the news. Our boy has not had full access of his body for the last 20 months…..20. As Doc was talking my mind just kept replaying over and over again, “Run, Forest, Run.” It was the most beautiful and profound charge!

Now, Elijah being released to full activity does not mean he just goes right back to where he was prior to Perthes striking. However, it does mean that he gets to give it his best shot and that it will take time as he has been out of commission all this time and will have to strengthen his leg/hip. He will continue to participate in PT several times a week as well as engage in daily stretching sessions as he works to mold the bone as it hopefully and gradually grows back. Elijah’s gauges will be his pain tolerance and range of motion. These 2 conditions will drive Elijah’s limitations and progress. Elijah will continue to be monitored by x-rays. For now, he is anxiously looking forward to playing basketball, continuing to develop in show choir, and leading worship with our Mosaic MKids team.

Obviously, we are still in a wait and see mode because life with Perthes is just that…working, waiting, stretching, waiting, x-raying, waiting, and seeing what happens. This whole experience has felt like an insanely wild roller coaster full of ups, downs, twists, turns, rises, falls, and flips. We are not sure what and how this next portion of the ride will pan out, but we are going to do our very best to ENJOY today’s part of the ride and pray we have many more highs ahead than lows. THANK YOU all for journeying along side us whether you live near or far, praying for us when we were weary, and encouraging us when weren’t sure we could make it up the hill. Embarking on yet another new season and trusting God knows best. Time for another tackle…..#tackleperthes

All our love,

Tiff & Shayne

Special side note – Sunday night before heading to Baltimore the 6th grade Loveland Tigers made their last appearance as a team in youth football. In a quick fire decision Shayne instructed Elijah to go out and make 1 final pass. Now, this was not scripted and keep in mind Elijah has not played in 2 seasons. Wouldn’t you know that Elijah, with the strong assistance from the offensive line, nailed the final pass to his buddy Trey. We might have lost the game, but it felt like we won a million Super Bowls. Being surrounded one last time by those he loves and respects so deeply and getting to feel that ball in his hand and watch it spiral through the air to one of his trusted teammates….priceless. PRICELESS. Felt like a whisper from heaven and reminder that HE has got our boy. Quick video below. Thank you to our team for a heartfelt sendoff to Baltimore. Nothing like being a Loveland Tiger.